Bee-Line Bus System
The Bee-Line Bus System, branded on the buses in lowercase as the bee-line system, is a bus system serving Westchester County, New York. The system is owned by the county's Department of Public Works and Transportation.
History
The system was founded on May 1, 1978, by the then Westchester County Department of Transportation to consolidate the bus system with thirteen private bus companies and has been given control over the buses, fare structure, routes, and services. By the 1980s, the bus system had an identity problem in who was providing the service. On May 19, 1987, WCDOT officially named the bus service "The Bee-Line System" with a 'bee-in-flight' mascot.The Westchester County Department of Public Works and Transportation currently contracts out to two private bus companies to provide service in Westchester County and the surrounding counties: Yonkers-based Liberty Lines Transit, Inc., the main company that either bought out or obtained franchises from the other twelve bus companies over the years, operates buses on all but three bus routes; and Cortlandt Manor-based P.T.L.A. Enterprise, Inc., a small company that operates buses on routes 16, 18, and 31.
Scope of service
Most Bee-Line routes operate seven days a week. There is no service county-wide on two days of the calendar year, Thanksgiving, and Christmas.Within Westchester
The system's 64 routes are mostly concentrated in the more urban southern portion of the county, with the cities of Mount Vernon, New Rochelle, and Yonkers receiving a high frequency of service. White Plains, the county seat and most centrally located city, is a major transportation hub with many routes converging on the city's TransCenter.Service in the northern portion of Westchester is sparse and is concentrated near slightly populated areas such as Mount Kisco, Ossining, or Peekskill. Areas such as Bedford Hills, Lewisboro, North Salem, and Pound Ridge receive paratransit service only. During the school year, special bus routes also operate. All but the county's smallest, most rural communities have at least rush hour service.
Outside Westchester
Because Westchester County borders on the New York City borough of the Bronx, many of the Bee-Line's routes operate into the Bronx, offering Westchester residents connections to the New York City Subway system. Every subway service in the Bronx is served by at least one Bee-Line route. The Bee-Line System also operates an express route BxM4C from White Plains, Greenburgh, Hartsdale, Scarsdale and Yonkers along Central Park Avenue to Fifth Avenue in Manhattan.Bee-Line operates mostly closed-door service in the Bronx. The only exceptions are:
- Route 8, which terminates at the College of Mount Saint Vincent on the Bronx/Yonkers border;
- Routes 40, 41, 42 and 43, which run along White Plains Road north of the Wakefield – 241st Street subway terminal;
- Route 45, which serves the Pelham Bay Park subway terminal;
- Route 54, which runs on Mundy Lane along the Bronx/Mount Vernon border, since no other bus routes travel entirely through these areas;
- and routes 60 and 61, which run along East Fordham and Boston roads.
Fares
All fares require exact change or MetroCard. All transfers are free with payment of fare. Dollar bills are not accepted on any Bee-Line System buses.Bee-Line Bus started accepting MetroCard on April 1, 2007. The fare for the BxM4C went down from $7 to $5. The regular fare was $2 for MetroCard, and $1.75 if paid in cash. Dollar bills, passports, and ticket books were no longer accepted for fare payment after this date. MetroCard Vans made stops on heavily used routes to help people get ready for the MetroCard. On July 23, 2019, it was announced that the Bee-Line bus fare system on all buses would be upgraded to the OMNY fare system in 2021-2022, replacing the MetroCard.
Fleet
Active fleet
This roster only lists buses and shuttle vans used in fixed route service. Paratransit vehicles are not listed. All buses are wheelchair accessible.| Year | Builder and model name | Photo | Length | Width | Powertrain | Numbers | Amount active | Energy source | Destination sign | Notes |
| 2001-2002 | Neoplan USA AN460 "Transliner" articulated |
| 577 | 1 retiring | Diesel | Luminator MegaMax 3000 LED-backlit flipdot |
| |||
| 2005 | DaimlerChrysler Orion V 05.505 |
| 116-136 | 18 | Diesel | Luminator Horizon LED sign | ||||
| 2006 | DaimlerChrysler Orion V 05.501 |
| 601-704 | 104 | Diesel | Luminator Titan LED sign | ||||
| 2006 | DaimlerChrysler Orion VII OG 07.501 |
| 201-204 | 4 | Diesel-electric hybrid | Luminator Titan LED sign | ||||
| 2008 | DaimlerChrysler Orion V 05.501 suburban |
| 801-830 | 27 | Diesel | Luminator Titan LED sign |
| |||
| 2009 | North American Bus Industries40-LFW HEV |
| 205-299 | 95 | Diesel-electric hybrid | Luminator Titan LED sign | ||||
| 2018-2019 | New Flyer Industries Xcelsior XDE60 articulated |
| 301-378 | 77 | Diesel-electric hybrid | TwinVision Chroma IV |
|
Past fleet
Historical Honors on Fleet
In October 2004, then-Westchester County Executive Andrew J. Spano launched a month-long celebration of local history by unveiling the top 15 winning names, which were applied on all of the 2002 Orion 05.505 buses. From 2005 to January 2012, these buses each bore the name of a person, place, or thing that played a role in the development of Westchester County.| Bus Number | Named after |
| 101 | The Toonerville Trolley |
| 102 | Rosa Parks |
| 103 | Amelia Earhart |
| 104 | Ella Fitzgerald |
| 105 | Horace Greeley |
| 106 | John Jay |
| 107 | Old Bet |
| 108 | The Spy Catchers |
| 109 | Eliza A. Horton |
| 110 | General "Vinegar Joe" Stilwell |
| 111 | Michael Schwerner |
| 112 | Washington Irving |
| 113 | Chief Gramatan |
| 114 | The Dragon Coaster |
| 115 | Elisha Graves Otis |